Water meter



(Model L.H.NASH.

WATER METER.

No. 280,221] Patented June 26, 1883.

- INVENTOR ATTORNEYS 50 formed with end segmental bearings which H UNITED STATES PATENT @FFIQE.

LEVIS H. NASH, OF BROOKLYN, ASSIGNOR TO NATIONAL METER COMPANY, OF NEWV YORK, N. Y.

WATER-M ETER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 280,221, dated June 26, 1883.

' Application filed January 24, 1881. Renewed January 30, [$83. (Modem T c'tZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LEWIS HALLoo i N ASH, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented new and useful Improvements in VVater-Meters, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in water-meters in which radially-arranged pistons adapted to travel in a case are controlled entirely in a circular path of rotation by the chamber within which they rotate, and in which their dividing positions with respect to the center of the case or the wall of said cham- I-5 ber are not changed during any part of their revolution. With the pistons thus adapted for operation I combine an armed lever eccentrically fulcrumed within the chamber, and which forms the transmitter for the pistons, the positions of which pistons will always be radial to the center of the chamber, and not to the center of the lever. The lever is constructed with three arms, giving large intervening spaces for the passage of the water and to lighten the moving parts. It serves to confine. the pistons in their relative positions within the case, to control the relative velocities of the pistons, andto transmit theirmotion to the dial mechanism by means of the 0 shaft upon which it is mounted. The pistons are fitted loosely within slots of the leverarms, the form of contact being such as to allow freedom of motion to these partswithin the case, and also to leave between the bear- 3 5 ing-edges of the pistons a passage for the wa ter into the slots, as the lever-arms, by their eccentric rotation, expose and inclose the pistons, the object of which water-passage is to extend the pressure of the water upon the arms of the lever within the slots by forcing'the pistonbearings against one side of the slot, soas to make a tight joint at the driving sideof each lever-arm. The advantageof this construc-- tion is that the wearing of the joints does not cause any leakage, as the piston always takes up its wear and maintains a tight joint at the bearing. To maintain the proper relative positions of the pistons within the chamber and the slots of the lever-arms, the pistons are travel within the chamber, between its walls and friction of the moving parts, using an armed lever of hard rubber to transmit the motion of the pistons to the dial mechanism, and forming the pistons and their controllingbearings of the same material, whereby the surfaces of the moving parts are kept from corroding and free fromthe collection of sediment, insuring the smooth and free working 'of the moving parts, and with pistons main taining tight joints at their contact-bearings with the case, and the lever which transmits its motion to the dial mechanism.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a circular chamber in section, within which the pistons are free to move in aconcent-ric path when force is applied to them; Fig. 2, a similar view, showing the armed lever eccentrically arranged for communicating the motion of the pistons to the shaft of the dial mechanism; Fig. 3, an axial section of the same; Fig. 4, the armed lever; Fig. 5, one of the pistons, showing one of its segmental bearing ends; and Fig. 6 shows a slightlymodified form of piston and leverslots.

A' cylindrical chamber, A, has inductio and eduction ports 13 and O, which communicate with the water-pipes in the usual manner and form the casing of the meter; The heads of this cylinder are formed each with an inward-projecting concentric hub, c, of suitable diameter, between the circumference of which and the walls of the chamber E segmental end bearings, f, of the pistons are adapted to travel in concentric paths against the inner sldes of the cylinder-heads, the pistons spanning the space within the chamber between said end bearings, and occupying radial positions with respect to the center of the chamber.

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The pistons F F F are preferably of hard rubber and integral with their segmental bearingsf, by which the pistons are confined in their movements to a circular path controlled by the case and the hub-bearin s.

Within the casing, and eccentric thereto, an; armed lever, G, of hard rubber, is mounted upon and secured in any convenient manner to a shaft, H, journaled in bearings in the op-' posite heads of the cylinder. The arms of the lever Ghave radial slots 1, which receive the pistons as they are revolved, being driven by the driving-piston, so as to travel with said driving-piston and carry the driven pistons. In order to provide for the relative changes and free working of the lever and the pistons, the latter are provided with rounded bearings c at their inner edges; or the slots may be enlarged, or provided with a curved recess, 0', on one of their inner sides, as in Fig. 6, so that the lever may oscillate slightly over the --pistons.

I have shown in the drawings, in Fig. 3, segmental bearings f at both ends of the pistons; but as the thickness of the lever is equal to the depth of the chamber E, and as the pistons are also equal to such depth of chamber, they will operate with a segmental bearing at one end only. The thickness of the segmental bearings f is equal to the projection of the corn centric hubs a, so that the lever, being placed between such concentric hubs, may operate over and in contact with the inner sides of said segmental bearings. The lever is formed of three equidistant slotted arms, into the slots of which the pistons are received and uncovered as they revolve by the eccentric relation of the lever with the concentric path traversed by said pistons. The lever-arms, while revolving in close proximity to the wall at one side of the case, do not make the joint therewith, but the pistons divide the case at all points, as shown in Fig. 2. The pistons, when on the passage at n, engage the lever-arm at a greater distance from the fulcrum than whenthey are at 771, so that the piston F will travel faster than the others, and the space on the inlet side will be continually enlarging, while that on the outlet side will continually decrease in volume. This construction gives two independent sources of powerviz., that due to pressure of the water upon the pistons and that due to its pressure upon the lever-arms. The power due to the pressure upon the pistons will equal the pressureupon the driving-piston multiplied by its velocity, less the pressure upon the driven piston multiplied by its velocity. The power developed by the pressure upon the lever-arms is by reason of the piston F engaging the le ver-arm at n, at a greater distance from the fulcrum than F. At m there is a greater area, a e, exposed than at m e, and the pressure acting, the difference between these areas will give aforce tending to rotate the lever in the direction of the pressure upon the longer arm.

In Fig. 2 I have shown, by dotted lines z z,

soaei the radial positions of the pistons in relation to the case, so that they always travel: in a cir' cular path. The lever-slots i are of a width a little greater than the width of the pistons, so

as to leave a passage for the water into said slots, thus not only producing and maintaining a tight joint at the contact-point of the lever and piston, but extending the driving pressure upon the arms within the slots. This contact-point may be formed by enlarging the inner end of the piston, or by recessing one side of the slot back of the point of the lever, as shown in Figs. 2 and 6; but in either case the pressure of the piston upon the lever will be in a direction of the pressure of the water until the piston passes the outletpoint, when the pressure from'the inlet upon such piston will be in the opposite direction, so as to form a close joint by the piston with the case be'- tween the inlet and the outlet ports, as in Fig. 6, instead of forming such joint by the arms of the lever. "Ilhe segmental bearings f extend only from one side of the pistons, so asto follow them, and thus prevent any advancing point striking or rubbing against the wallet the cylinder, and the leastfriction and best results are obtained when the segmental bearings form an arc of ninety degrees. The segmental. bearings also avoid oblique pressure ofthe lever up on th e pistons, which would produce an oblique pressure of the piston upon the wall of the cylinder, and to avoid such oblique pressure the sides of the lever-slots which drive the pistons against the pressure are recessed at c, or formed so as to relieve such oblique action by causing the lever to move smoothly over the inner ends or corners of the pistons when they are being forced against the pressure, which occurs while the piston is traveling between the inlet and the outlet ports of the cylinder.

The piston driven by the pressure must of course receive the power to force the return- ,ing piston against the pressure, making it necessary to employ a proper connecting device by which this may be accomplished. This connecting device is furnished by the ecceir tric lever, the pistons being so connected with the slotted arms thereof that the driving-piston shall move through a greater distance than the driven piston, whereby the driving-piston will gain a purchase, by which the driven piston can be carried forward, leaving a balance of power to be utilized as a motive power. The areas of the pistons exposed to the pressure are not of necessity always the same; but whether they are or not, the power to rotate the lever and itsshaft is produced by the driving-piston engaging the lever-arm at a greater distance from the fulcrum than the driven piston. The arms of the lever being free from contact with the walls of the cylinder, and the pressure of the water thereon being the same at every point, the lever is perfectly balanced, and is therefore sensitive to the driving action of the pistons, causing the pistons to run. smooth, and making a very accurate meter.

It is obvious that the device shown and described maybe used as a water or hot-air motor and as a steam-engine. V

I have not shown the dial mechanism, as it is obvious that it maybe applied to the levershaft to register in the usual manner.

I claim- 1. The combination, in a water meter or motor, of the joint-forming pistons with a lever having arms corresponding with said pis-- tons, eccentrically carriedby the power-transmitting shaft, each arm engaging with the inner end of a piston, and forming a radially sliding joint, which allows of freedom of motion of the parts, substantially as described, for the purpose specified.

2. The combination, with a casing having a central hub or hubs, forming a concentric recess in the head or heads of said casing, and an eccentrically-pivoted lever having slotted arms, of the pistons having a segmental end bearing or bearings adapted to travel in said recess or recesses, and to drive said lever, substantially as described, for the purpose speci-' 3. The combination of the cylinder provided with central hubs, and an eccentricallypivoted lever having slotted arms, with pis-, tons operating independently. of each other within-the slots of said lever-arms, andprovided with segmental end bearingsextending from one-side only ofsaid pistons and following their circular path, substantially as described, for the purpose specified.

4. The pistons carried radially in the slots of an armed lever revolving eccentrically to the path of said pistons, said pistons having bearings on their inner ends, and of less width than the slots of the lever-arms, to form a passage between each piston and the, slot within which it operates, substantially as described, for the purpose specified.

5. The armed lever adapted to revolve eccentrically within a cylinder, and to be driven by pistons revolving concentrically within said cylinder, and operating within slots of said lever-arm, the said slots having a curved re- .cess on one side, at its innerend, and the said pistons having enlarged bearing ends adapted to 'operatewithin said recess, substantially as described, for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereuntorset my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LEWIS H. NASH. WVitnesses:

7M. M. BROWN,

. E1). BARRACLAUGH. 

